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With golfers forced to do most of their practicing from home, the demand of training aids and indoor equipment has skyrocketed. But, you don’t have to wait on backordered items to improve your game. Two of Golf Digest’s top state-ranked teachers have great drills you can do using items around the house. In the videos

So you’ve been grooving your quarantine game—or at least you think you have—hitting foam balls into a net or putting on that mat in your hallway. But the problem is, how do you really know if what you’ve been doing is actually improving your skills instead of just killing time? We asked two Golf Digest

Editor’s Note: This is an excerpt from our Patrick Cantlay cover story, which is available in full for free through our digital edition app. You can access Issue 5 of Golf Digest in its entirety digitally for free. You might not believe this because I don’t smile very much on the golf course, but the

Dr. Bhrett McCabe is used to talking athletes down off the figurative ledge. Most of the issues the peak-performance coach usually deals with have to do with confidence, coming back from injuries and improving on-course or on-field decision-making. What McCabe’s clients—and all of us—face in this chaotic and uncertain time goes way beyond sports. But

ABOUT In golf, a loss of mobility and function often means a loss of power, but you don’t need expensive gym equipment to improve how you move. With Jennifer Fleischer’s series “Better Than Yoga,” you can create a more powerful, more consistent swing with only a yoga mat and a golf club. Fleischer’s innovative workouts

Tour golf is in a holding pattern right now, but that doesn’t mean elite golfers are waiting for quarantine to end to resume their work. Whether players are in places like Phoenix—where courses and ranges are still open—or in other states where facilities are closed, they’re still in many cases isolated from coaches and trainers

Augusta National is the quintessence of a second-shot golf course. Wide fairways prevent you from feeling like you’re in a straightjacket off the tee, but that doesn’t mean you can mindlessly whale away. The perceptive player recognizes that his ability to attack the flag with the approach is largely determined by the drive—much more than

Think of the golfers you know. The big hitters have a lot of speed but no control, right? The short hitters grind away quietly, never missing a fairway. But power is not a fixed skill. Power can be reined in or built out, but the latter is by far the longer and tougher road. “I

When creating a workout program to improve your golf swing, focus on exercises that make your body more stable and flexible, then build strength and power, says Golf Digest Fitness Advisor Ben Shear. Last week, he offered six moves for better stability and flexibility. Assuming you’ve been working on those, it’s time to add three

Whether you’re DJ and Paulina or a 20-handicapper with a stretch of open carpeting, you’ve almost certainly been spending more time than usual these days rolling putts inside. And you might think that your carpet or a turf putting mat doesn’t offer a very realistic representation of real golf. But Golf Digest 50 Best Teachers

When you watch Tiger Woods, you might think he plays the hero shot, the TV shot, every time he steps up. After all, who has come through with more spectacular moments in the clutch than Tiger? Well, that doesn’t mean he takes on every daring shot he sees—in fact, probably far fewer than you’d think.

As a golf instructor, I’m supposed to tell you that going for the green by hitting a middle-iron shot over tall trees is too risky. It’s better to punch out and play for a one-putt par. But part of the allure of playing golf is trying the tough shots, so I’m shelving the prudent rhetoric

We are in Day … actually I forgot what day this is . . . of quarantine, and amid larger and more consequential concerns, you may be confronted with a litany of smaller ones—how to work at home with small kids; what movies to watch at night, that sort of thing. To that second less-vital

Some players view chipping and pitching as separate entities from the full swing. They have their full-swing feels, and they have their short-game feels. I’ve never thought of it that way. My short-game motion is a miniature version of my full swing—same grip, same rhythm, same release pattern. I like to have a continuous feeling

Let me explain that headline, because last I checked, the hands are attached to the arms. But I want you to separate them in your mind for a minute. Good players swing their arms down at a high rate of speed, which gets the body turning in support (above, right). Poor players often let their

If your green-reading skills aren’t as sharp as you’d like, perhaps it’s time for a fresh method. Jeongeun Lee6, the defending U.S. Women’s Open champion, uses an unusual technique, but it’s based on common sense. She reads putts with her body facing perpendicular to her target and her head turned to the side. “Putting is

I know you’d rather spend your range time bombing drivers than working on your short game, so asking you to hit accurate pitch shots based on feel developed over hours and hours of practice is a little unrealistic. RELATED: Three keys for better control with your pitch shots So how do you improve your pitching

The closer you examine tour players’ swings, the more subtleties you’ll discover. One such move is so indiscernible in real time, you have to replay it in slow motion or see a 3-D rendition to verify what’s happening. But it is happening, and it’s a big reason the best players can generate so much speed

It takes zero athletic ability to set up to the ball perfectly every time. What it does take is knowing the correct positions and having the discipline to get them right. Let’s start with the driver. Set the clubface square behind the ball, then take your stance so your feet are wider than your shoulders.

Assuming you’ve got some down time at home while we wait out the coronavirus pandemic, we put together an eight-part, in-home test for you to find out just how “golf fit” you really are. Call it the Golf Digest Living Room Combine. If you can pass all eight of these tasks, you’ve got the strength

Wouldn’t it be great to get into mid-season form faster this year, without wasting weeks or months trying to organize your game? Now you can, with Golf Digest’s 10-Day Tune-Up, a series of free video lessons from two of our top instructors: swing coach Travis Fulton and fitness trainer Kaitlyn Pimentel. Get an email a

ABOUT Watching a tour player hit balls on the practice tee is a mesmerizing experience: the crisp sound of impact, the explosiveness, the tight draws and power fades, one after another. But there’s a level-up experience that makes even tour pros stop and watch: When Tiger Woods shows up. Now you can see for yourself

Editor’s Note: Our Masters Preview Issue was printed before the postponement of the 2020 Masters. Read more here >> Augusta National demands more specific shots than any other course we play on tour. It’s no coincidence that 17 guys have won the Masters at least twice, and that the same guys—even guys on the PGA

Swinging harder is the typical instinct in the quest for more distance, but the quality of impact can have an even bigger effect. Travis Fulton says the key is striking the driver level or just on the upswing: Play the ball forward, tilt your spine slightly away from the target, and point your chest behind

ABOUT Prepare your body for the demands of the golf season with a top-notch fitness routine. This workout series from Golf Digest 50 Best Golf-Fitness Trainer Kaitlyn Pimentel will teach you how to prime your golf muscles to swing with power and efficiency. Just follow along, do what Kaitlyn does in the videos, and you’re

To stay in control throughout the golf swing, you need a strong core. Trainer Kaitlyn Pimentel demonstrates this Bird Dog exercise to strengthen the muscles around your mid-section for better stability. Starting on all fours, extend one arm forward and the opposite leg backward, then return to the start. Do 6-8 reps on each side,

It can be daunting to stay at home and practice social distancing, so having an outlet can break up your day and help you feel more productive. For golfers, that can mean practice swings in the backyard or making putting strokes on the carpet. To help you make the most of the extra time you

The way you grip the club either promotes or prevents good mechanics during the swing. Teacher Travis Fulton recommends the following procedure for taking your grip: Place your lead hand on the club with the thumb slightly right of center on the grip (for right-handers); then, add your trail hand, covering the lead thumb with

Here’s a great exercise from our fitness expert Kaitlyn Pimentel to train a more powerful leg drive through the ball. From a wide stance and with your hands behind your head, practice sitting down slowly on a bench or chair, then pushing up through your heels. Do several reps. This simple Body-Weight Squat is a

The short game seems to require its own skill set, but the chip shot is actually a miniature version of the full swing. So working on your chipping is a perfect way to start up again. Here, Travis Fulton shares his chipping keys, like favoring the front foot, setting the shoulders level, and turning the